Kishi doesn't dare to kill off any character really, only the bad ones.

Neji should have died, you can't survive with a hole of that size for long, how fast was the medical squad? Were they hiding behind the closest tree?

But it is probably true that Neji didn't die because he sells action figures and shit, but i think the same goes for Chouji after his super heroic win against Jiroubou.

Lastly Neji is boring, i fail to see why everyone likes him.